Adopt A Slytherin Day
by Destiny's-Perfection
Summary: Draco should have stayed in bed. He really really should have. Warning: Mild Slash/Yaoi. HP/DM.


Just a short piece to help with my writer's block. Because really, every author needs a Drarry fic. ;)

* * *

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed as Ron took his seat beside her.

He stifled a yawn and reached to start filling his plate, "Hmm?"

"Where's Harry? I specifically asked you to make sure that he wouldn't be late because-"

"He's already up." Ron cut in.

"What?" Hermione was confused. Harry was a later sleeper then Ron. Probably because he usually stayed up later then either Ron or Hermione, but still... For Harry to be up earlier then both of them... Well, something had to be up.

"He went to sleep early last night, probably woke up early too." Ron said as he opened his Transfiguration text book to double check that his essay had the relevant information.

Hermione blushed. Sometimes, Ron could read her too well.

"Where is he then?" She asked, reaching for some toast.

Ron shrugged as he pushed his essay and book back into his bag, before shoveling his food into his mouth at great speed.

"Dun oh cush 'e wash gon' 'for I-"

"Ron please! Swallow your food before you talk to me!"

Hermione sniffed in disgust.

Ron gulped down his food, taking a swig of pumpkin juice before he replied,

"Sorry," He smiled sheepishly, "Umm... I dunno where he is, he was gone before I woke up. Made his bed and everything."

Hermione raised an eyebrow but decided to leave it. She turned to her Ancient Runes text book.

"He's been acting a bit odd lately though." Ron continued thoughtfully, reaching for his pumpkin juice.

"Really?" Hermione frowned, looking up from her text book. "I hadn't noticed."

Ron snorted into his goblet, "Of course not, the way you've been focused on your school work I'm surprised you even remember to eat."

Hermione looked affronted, "Ron! This year is a very important year! If we don't-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Ron laughed, brushing her argument off. "Anyway, Harry's just been... A bit off."

At Hermione's questioning look, he elaborated.

"Like... You know he asked me if I'd hate him if he started hangin' out with those slimy snakes over there?" Ran said, glaring over at the Slytherin table as if it was their fault his best friend had gone off his rocker.

Hermione looked puzzled. "And what did you say to that?"

Ron laughed, tearing his eyes from the opposing table "It's Harry, 'Mione. I told him he could be getting married to one of those pathetic snakes and I wouldn't care. I just told him to make sure it wasn't Crabbe or Goyle."

Hermione choked on the toast she'd been eating, her face turning red.

"And... I caught him singing to himself yesterday. I wouldn't usually care, but then he started laughing... Just... Broke out into laughter... For no reason. I dunno... I just hope he's okay."

They went silent for a moment before a worried look crossed over Ron's face,

"Or maybe not... He's been hanging around Loony, I mean, Lovegood a bit too much for my liking. Maybe she's starting to rub off on him." Ron shuddered at the thought of Harry Potter with the personality of Luna Lovegood. It did not bode well for the Wizarding World.

Hermione patted his arm thoughtfully, "I'm sure he's fine. When he wants to talk to us I'm sure he wi-"

-BANG!!-

Students all over the Great Hall gasped in shock, some going so far as screaming shrilly. Seamus, a few seats down had fallen off his seat and a few of the Hufflepuffs had clutched their closest neighbour's hands. A cloud of tiny green and silver sparkles showered the students and the Professors from above. In the background, a small flute could be heard playing a simple melody. In the back of Hermione's mind she recognized it as the melody of 'For He's A Jolly Good Fellow'.

"What the hell?!"

Ron and Hermione shared a look of confusion.

With a small 'pop' a giant banner appeared in the aisle between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. All heads turned to see what it was.

Slowly it unraveled itself. In huge glittering green letters, on a silver banner that stretched from the Slytherin table to the Gryffindor table it read-

"Happy... Adopt a Slytherin Day?!" Hermione exclaimed.

Ron's eyes drifted to the Slytherin table... "'Mione... They look... Not happy." He stuttered.

Not happy was an understatement. Millicent Bulstrode had crushed the goblet she'd been holding in her left hand. Crabbe and Goyle had started flexing their hands and both reached for the nearest student that didn't belong to Slytherin. Unfortunately for Zacharias Smith he happened to be sitting directly behind them. So they'd grabbed him and both punched his lights out. Blaise Zabini looked livid, his wand drawn, eyes narrowing at the Gryffindor table. Pansy Parkinson, muttering curses under her breath, was furiously scribbling down a letter on her conjured parchment, most likely directed to her father who was a Govenor for the School Board. And Draco Malfoy... Malfoy looked ready to kill, but he'd reigned in his temper. Holding himself stiff, glaring at Hermione and Ron. It was a look that promised retribution.

The silence was broken by Albus Dumbledore,

"Adopt a Slytherin Day?" He turned to McGonagall in surprise, "Minerva, you never told me we had a holiday coming up!" He grinned, blue eyes twinkling so brightly behind half-moon glasses that McGonagall had to look away briefly to save herself from permanent blindness.

Minerva McGonagall pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation, "It's because we don't, Albus."

"This is a travesty." Sneered Severus Snape as he glared down at the Gryffindor table. "It's Potter, I know it is!"

"Now, now Severus. You can't blame everything on young Harry." Soothed Dumbledore, popping a lemon drop into his mouth. He held out a small box to the fuming Snape,

"Lemon drop, Severus?"

At that moment however, 16 year old Harry James Potter, voted hottest male in Hogwarts (just a few votes ahead of Draco Malfoy, in second, and Blaise Zabini and Ron Weasley, both tied for third), winner of the Hogwarts Most Breathtaking Smile Award, 2 years running (though he'd never received an award for it because he wasn't even aware it even existed), Saviour of the Wizarding World 5 times over, receiver (and discarder) of an Order of Merlin First Class, and general all round Boy-Who-Just-Wont-Take-A-Hint-And-Drop-Dead-Already, decided to make his presence known by strolling into the Great Hall with one arm draped lazily over the shoulders of one, 5th year Ravenclaw, voted Weirdest Person In Hogwarts To Date, Luna Lovegood.

If it was even possible, Snape's glare became colder. "I told you, Albus!" He hiss, "Potter! It's always Potter!!" He all but screamed, jumping to his feet.

Dumbledore sighed. Harry had chosen the worst time to make his fashion statement.

A tight emerald green tee stretched across Harry's chest, the stitching in sparkling silver. Black jeans clung to his lithe frame. And a tiny sparkling silver coiled snake could be seen on his left ear. His hair in his trademark Just-Been-Shagged-Repeatedly style, black tendrils hanging over emerald green eyes that, for today at least, were not hidden behind bulky black glasses. He grinned sheepishly at the staring student body and half of the female population of Hogwarts swooned in unison.

"I knew we gave him that award for a reason." Sighed Susan Bones to Hannah Abbott, cheeks flushed a burning red.

As one, the entire membership of the Official Harry Potter Fan club, which consisted of most of the female population and at least half of the male, glared at the girl he had his arm around.

Luna Lovegood looked unperturbed as she walked, Harry's Gryffindor cloak casually draped over her shoulders, under Harry's arm. The front open to reveal the same tee-shirt that Harry was wearing paired with a plain black skirt that flared to her knees.

They stopped at the Slytherin table.

Right beside Draco Malfoy.

The entire Hall held its breath.

"Malfoy!" Harry grinned, "How's it going?"

Malfoy sneered, "If you think this is funny, Scar head, then believe me, it is seriously lacking."

Harry looked at him in bemusement. "I don't think anything's funny, I just wanted to know if you're having a good day or not."

"Potter, if you think for one minute that-"

Draco's sentence trailed off as Harry, removing his arm from around Luna, raised it to Malfoys face.

For a minute, Draco thought Potter was actually going to cup his face in his hands... And trail his tan, deliciously smooth fingers over his cheek, down his lips, across his...

Draco fought down a blush and almost jumped when he felt Harry's fingers gently carding through his hair. Before his eyes, sparkles of green and silver fell softly to the ground.

"You've got sparkles in your hair." Harry whispered, almost to himself, eyes slightly out of focus as he stared at Draco's face.

Draco gulped, looking into big green eyes that captivated him and made him want to drown in them and... He shook himself. Slapping Potters hand away he was about to say another withering comment when-

"Aha!" Exclaimed Potter in triumph.

A flash of gold blurred before Draco's face and -CLINK!-.

Draco blinked.

Harry looked down at Draco, a beatific smile creeping over his lips, "I've decided!" He exclaimed loudly for the whole Hall to hear, "We're going to be friends."

Draco was confused. For one thing... Potter had just said they were going to be friends. For another thing, he couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence because he was too busy staring at luscious red lips that smiled down at him so charmingly... And for another thing...

"What the hell is this?!" Draco screamed, his cool composure lost in the face of-

"I do believe they're handcuffs." Remarked Luna, acting as if this were a normal conversation and they were talking about the weather.

"Quite nice actually, the gold complements Harry's tan and looks rather fetching on you, even if you are a tad bit too pale." Luna continued, looking intensely at the gold handcuffs that stretched from Draco Malfoy's left hand to Harry Potter's right.

"Take it off!!" Seethed Draco. "Take it off NOW!"

"No can do. It's tradition." Harry stated calmly in the face of Draco's fury, nodding to himself, one elegant finger tapping against his chin.

Draco narrowed his eyes at him.

"On 'Adopt a Slytherin Day', the _adopter_, that's me, chooses an _adoptee_, namely you, and they have to be friends for the whole day! You've already been chosen as an adoptee Malfoy, you can't back out now. You can't break tradition!" Harry finished passionately, one fist clenched fist raised in the air in triumph. His green eyes twinkling as brightly as Dumbledore's on a good day and Malfoy took this to be a very, very, very bad omen of what was to come.

"I've never heard of this stupid 'tradition' before." Sneered Blaise, forcing his way to Draco's side.

"Well obviously you don't pay much attention to traditions then."

"POTTER!"

Harry looked up to find Snape, McGonagall and Dumbledore bearing down upon them from the Staff Table. Flitwick and Sprout seemed more intent on watching the live show.

"What is going on here?!" Screeched Snape.

Harry threw a lopsided grin at Snape but decided to ignore the question.

"Morning Professors." He greeted his Head of House and the Headmaster.

"Potter," McGonagall sniffed in annoyance, "Care to explain?"

"It's 'Adopt A Slytherin Day'. I adopted Draco." Lips stretched into an impossibly wide grin.

Draco however, did not look impressed.

"You did not just say my-"

Harry shushed Draco with a look, the wide grin still not leaving his face.

Around the hall, faint thumps could be heard as several people opted for the easier, safer and less complicated path of fainting rather than listening to the Saviour of the Wizarding World explain to various professors of Hogwarts just why he was handcuffed to the Slytherin Ice Prince. Snape himself looked at a loss for words.

"And Luna adopted Blaise!" Harry exclaimed brightly, as if this would convince them if nothing else did.

Blaise folded his hands over his chest, "No she most certainly did-"

A blur of gold and -CLINK!-

Blaise blinked and looked down at his wrist... Where a golden handcuff linked him to... Lovegood. His wand flew into his free hand and he whispered furiously as spell after spell failed to remove the offending item on his wrist.

"You cannot just create a holiday and handcuff yourself to an unsuspecting student, Potter." McGonagall lectured.

Snape jumped in, "That's right! Let's see... 1,000 points from-"

"But Professor!" Harry cried, sending a pleading look to Dumbledore, "It's to promote Inter-House Unity!"

And so the deal was signed, sealed, delivered and the tentative holiday established as the golden words were spoken in the presence of the ever annoying, ever distinguished, easily pleased Headmaster.

"You created a day to celebrate Inter-House Unity?" Dumbledore's eyes practically glowed, they were twinkling so much.

Harry shook his head and grinned, "Not a day, a _week_. Today's Adopt a Slytherin Day. Tomorrow's Adopt a Gryffindor Day, and then Wednesday's Ravenclaw and Thursday's Hufflepuff. And then on Friday, it's Inter-House Unity Day where, for the entire day, no-one belongs to a house and everyone has to celebrate together as a united school!"

"You created this?!" Screamed Draco into Harry's ear, "You told me this was a bloody tradition!"

Harry patted Draco's shoulder soothingly, "Draco, where do you think traditions come from? I mean, they have to start somewhere!"

Draco shrugged Harry's hand away, "Stop calling me-"

Dumbledore clapped excitedly and cut in, "What an excellent idea, my boy! Why has no-one ever thought of this before I wonder?"

"Albus?" McGonagall looked puzzled.

"Albus, you seriously can't be considering actually letting this-" Snape never finished his sentence.

Flash, gold, -CLINK-

"Albus!" McGonagall squeaked. Staring down at the golden handcuff that tied her to... The resident Potions Master.

"Now, now Minerva. We must set a good example for our children, and we must adhere to traditions, new and old. It's Adopt a Slytherin Day and you have just adopted a Slytherin. Congratulations my dear!" Albus smiled.

* * *

Draco Malfoy knew it was bad day when he woke up with an aching member and the remnants of a rather vivid dream involving himself, Harry freakin' Potter and a bucket load of melted chocolate.

Draco Malfoy knew it could only get worse when he realized what it was exactly that had woken him up. Pansy Parkinson's loud and rather furious screeching was literally shredding through the comfortable silence that had once permeated the air of the Boys 6th Year Dormitory. Draco could just manage to make out Blaise Zabini's rather stuttered attempts at trying to calm her down from another rant about some nameless 7th year Ravenclaw that had dumped her in favour of a 6th year Hufflepuff that, "looks like a half-rotting troll corpse anyway!!" Screeched Pansy as a rather loud tinkling of glass echoed across the steadily emptying dormitory. Crabbe and Goyle had disappeared the minute Pansy had appeared and Theodore Nott was trying to sneak out without getting caught in the crossfire between Pansy's temper and the wall.

When Draco Malfoy finally managed to crawl out of bed and had made it safely to the bathroom, he realized that his day was a nightmare straight out of hell when he realized that he'd run out of gel.

But still, Draco rationalized, surely it couldn't get any worse than this... Right?

Of course he was wrong.

He was always wrong.

Oh so very wrong.

Later, when he found himself handcuffed to a very sinful looking, very unattached, very available and very tempting Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy could only curse his idiotic foolishness for even leaving his dormitory when he had known (known!) that today was just not going to be a good day.

* * *

Ron Weasley wasn't as smart as Hermione Granger. Nor was he as brave or courageous as Harry Potter. But if anything, Ron liked to think that he was the best at anticipating and reacting to situations. As a chess master, he was most adept at being a strategist and therefore prided himself on being the most rational when surprises cropped up in their lives. So when he heard Harry's proclamation to be Draco Malfoy's friend he figured it had to be for the best. It was Harry after all, and Harry always knew better... Most of the time anyway. When Dumbledore agreed to Harry's introduction of a new holiday, Ron thought again that it would be for the best. Inter-House Unity was at an all time low and a unity, even a tentative one at that, between Slytherin and Gryffindor would probably work more wonders towards student morale then anyone realized.

So when his best friend, Harry Potter, thanked Albus Dumbledore and dragged a still protesting Draco Malfoy to the Gryffindor table and promptly sat across from him, Ron Weasley could only groan at the look that Harry was sending him. He knew what that look meant. And for the life of him, Ron Weasley couldn't understand why he just couldn't say no.

* * *

His bottom lip pouted just slightly. So slightly that no-one that wasn't a close friend would have even realized,

"Harry..." Ron trailed off, the pleading evident in his voice.

Hermione looked from Harry's miniscule pout to Ron's rapidly failing will. It was only time before Ron gave in. Harry was too much like a baby brother to both of them for them to say no to him for too long.

Harry blinked once. Still staring at Ron.

Draco Malfoy found this very odd, and very annoying. It was as if the Golden Trio were having a conversation between themselves that no-one else was privy too. And it was then that Draco Malfoy realized that nearly the entire Hall was holding a collective breath, watching the interaction between the Saviour and his best friend.

It was at that moment that common sense decided to grace Draco's mind. Ron Weasley hated the Slytherins more than Harry Potter did. Since the entire Gryffindor house took their cues from The Golden Trio, Gryffindor attitude towards Slytherin (and in turn, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff attitude towards Slytherin) would be determined by the acceptance or rejection of the idea from the other two thirds of the Golden Trio.

Ron sighed, "Harry..." He stated calmly, trying to go for the 'I'm-Your-Best-Friend-What-Are-You-Trying-To-Make-Me-Do?' look.

Harry hmphed lightly and lowered his eyes as he stared at his left hand playing idly with a fork.

"Harry..." Weasley's voice was strained now as if his resolve was slowly being picked away, bit by bit.

There was no response from the Boy-Who-Defeated-The-Dark-Lord.

An exasperated sigh escaped Weasley as he repeated himself,

"Harry."

Draco Malfoy had no idea how a conversation could occur with only one word and repeated sighs, but apparently the so called conversation meant something to the Boy Wonder because a grin escaped across his lips and his glittering eyes looked at Ron as if he'd just created a better, faster version of Quidditch. He saw Granger hand the Weasel something silently under the table and he watched in curiosity as they both rose as one, leaving their bags behind. This must have confirmed something for the Gryffindors because it was at that moment that everyone resumed what they were doing and a nervous Neville Longbottom tentatively offered a jug of pumpkin juice to a thoroughly confused Draco Malfoy, who accepted it without a word as his eyes trailed after the figures of Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.

"You guys are the best!" Yelled Harry at the backs of his retreating friends. His only response was a backwards wave from Ron.

* * *

Pansy Parkinson liked many things. She liked gold and jewelry. She liked fine clothes and silk scarves. She liked milk chocolate and full cream milk. And most of all, she liked when things made sense and when life was ordered. She was pretty in a way that only a young pureblood heiress can be pretty, and that made sense. When she'd caught that godforsaken toad-scum that shall hence forth remain unnamed in her presence, that sense had gone out the window. She was a Slytherin and a Parkinson, being cheated on just didn't make sense. If anything, -she- was meant to be the cheater. It was just unheard of!

When the banner had unraveled over the Dining Hall, she'd felt her sense slipping all over again and she'd done the one thing she could think of to reset that order into her school life. She'd grabbed quill and parchment and started penning a letter to her father about this disruptions and utter disgrace of the absurd debacle.

When Potter had the gall, the utter NERVE to handcuff himself to Draco and proclaim that they were going to be friends, like it was just another day in the effing life of a Saviour, Pansy knew that her order and sense were on the edge of doing a suicide jump. But still, she tried to cling to it with all her might. First and foremost, by shutting out the hall and pretending that Draco Malfoy was not having breakfast surrounded by lions. She pretended that she didn't see an uncomfortable Blaise Zabini sitting next to a humming Loony Lovegood. She pretended she couldn't see a seething Professor Snap and a sulking Professor McGonagall at the teachers table. She locked herself in her own little world of denial and built a nice sound house on the banks of that river that apparently doesn't just run through Egypt.

Pansy Parkinson was on the last paragraph of her letter to her father when a shadow fell over her shoulder and she paused momentarily. The bottom of her gut dropped and she knew, just knew! that her sense and order were about to go free falling out the window. But she clung to them like a drowning man clings to his last breath of air.

A throat cleared behind her and she assiduously ignored it, instead throwing herself even more furiously in to her letter.

"Parkin-... I mean, Pansy, could I have a word?"

Her heart froze when she heard that voice. It was the Weasel. Oh hell no, it couldn't be-

She hadn't realized that she'd hesitated just a moment too long. She didn't see the flashing of flying gold. But she heard the clink, and she felt the weight of something fall gently against her wrist. She tried to calm her breathing. Hopefully, it wasn't what she thought it was. It was the Weasel after all, and even he wouldn't-

She never got to finish her thought.

She'd caught sight of the handcuff.

* * *

Harry grinned happily as he buttered himself a piece of toast, one-handed. Well... Attempted would probably be a better word. He was having a hard time of it, and it looked to be a losing battle. So gruesome was his defeat that Ginny finally took pity on him and placed 3 slices of buttered toast on his plate for him.

He gave her a sheepish grin and she just sighed and waved it off. Really, Harry was just hopeless when there was no-one around to make sure he wasn't being a complete idiot.

Next to him, a sulking Draco Malfoy sat drinking his Pumpkin Juice and refusing to make conversation with any of the surrounding lions. Instead he chose to sneer at them and sulk in his own little corner. It was harder then it looked, considering there was no corner. After all, Harry's pride of place was the very middle of the Gryffindor table.

Ginny looked at his plate and decided to take pity on the Slytherin Prince too. Harry was giving him a chance (for whatever reason), so she might as well play nice while he was at it.

She threw 3 pieces of buttered toast onto Malfoy's plate too.

"I don't-" Malfoy started to rage, but she never let him finish.

"I know, Malfoy."

This seemed to enrage him further.

"See here Weasle-"

"Yes, Malfoy." Draco reddened further.

"I don't-"

"We've already established that, Malfoy." Ginny rolled her eyes as Malfoy seethed in his seat.

"Because you're absolu-"

"Of course, Malfoy." Malfoy looked ready to kill as Ginny decided to forgo the conversation in favour of filing her nails.

"And you-"

"Whatever, Malfoy." She waved her hand unconcernedly and Malfoy gripped his goblet harder, looking as if he'd throw it at her.

Harry decided to defuse the situation.

When Malfoy went to open his mouth to rage further against Ginny, he grabbed a strawberry off of Neville's plate and popped it into Draco's mouth.

Silence reigned.

"Try the strawberry's," Harry smirked, "They're really good."

Before Draco could even form a coherent thought, the Great Hall came under attack.

At least… That was his first thought when the screaming began.

"AAAAARRRRGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!"

Until he realized that he recognized the voice.

"WEASLEY YOU MOTHER EFFING S.O.B!!! YOU TAKE THIS OFF OR ELSE I'LL-"

Yep… Who else could own those most impressive set of lungs but Pansy Parkinson herself.

"… YOU REGRET THIS, I SWEAR I WILL YOU INCONGRUOUS TOERAG PIECE OF FILTH, NOT EVEN FIT TO-"

Draco decided that today was the worst day in his entire life. So he did what any other Malfoy would do in his situation. He ate his strawberry, and pretended that he was not sitting with the lions at breakfast, handcuffed to the Saviour of the Wizarding World.

Oh Denial, how sweet art thou fruit.

* * *

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You know the drill.

- Des.


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